In this Decoding TV bonus episode, David and Patrick discuss the season 2 premiere of Peacemaker, “The Ties that Grind.”

The first season of Peacemaker emerged in a totally different era of the DCU. This new season straddles the line between them. How well does it pull this off? How do the themes of the episode mirror what’s going on in the DCU? And do we think you should watch Peacemaker with your children? Listen to hear us discuss all these questions and more.

Links:

• Listen to Patrick’s videogame podcast, Remap Radio
• Subscribe to Patrick’s newsletter, Crossplay
• Subscribe to this podcast on YouTube
• Follow this podcast on Instagram
• Follow this podcast on Tiktok
• Subscribe to David’s free newsletter, Decoding Everything
• Follow David on Instagram
• Follow David on Tiktok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the third episode of Alien: Earth.

What do we think of MSNBC’s rebrand to MS Now? Is it a bad sign that Ben Stiller won’t be directing season 3 of Severance? Can YouTubers like Mark Rober successfully make the move to Netflix? And how is Alien: Earth shaping up as a series? Listen to hear us discuss all these questions and more.

Homework for next week:

• Alien: Earth Episode 4 (Hulu/FX)
• Peacemaker Season 2 Episode 1 (HBO)
• Bonus Ep: Smoke Season 1 (Apple TV+)

Shownotes:

• 09:22 - TV News
• MSNBC Rebrand to ‘MS NOW’ Draws Derision, Confusion
• Ben Stiller Won’t Direct ‘Severance’ Season 3, Plans World War II Survival Movie: ‘You Only Have So Much Time’
• Mark Rober and Netflix team up for competition series
• ‘Dept. Q’ Renewed for Second Season at Netflix
• ‘Fallout’ Season 2 Sets December Premiere; First Look Photos Show the Ghoul in New Vegas
• 46:30 - Alien: Earth
• Episode 3 - Metamorphosis

Links:

• Listen to Patrick’s videogame podcast, Remap Radio
• Subscribe to Patrick’s newsletter, Crossplay
• Subscribe to this podcast on YouTube
• Follow this podcast on Instagram
• Follow this podcast on Tiktok
• Subscribe to David’s free newsletter, Decoding Everything
• Follow David on Instagram
• Follow David on Tiktok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Watch the video version of this podcast.

This podcast contains SPOILERS for The Rehearsal Season 2 on HBO.

The Rehearsal Season 2 chronicles Nathan Fielder’s attempts to understand why aviation accidents happen. According to Fielder, one major factor is that pilots are unwilling to communicate candidly with each other, especially when they disagree or have bad news to deliver.

To test this theory, Fielder used his resources from The Rehearsal to create a fictional(?) aviation-themed singing competition called Wings of Voice. In this competition, pilots judged singers performances, advanced the ones they liked, and were forced to break the bad news to some contestants that they were eliminated. The idea was that by forcing them to break singers’ hearts, the process would reveal something about what it takes to be a good communicator.

I used a “(?)” next to “fictional” above because even though contestants on Wings of Voice were occasionally made the butt of the joke on The Rehearsal and the competition never aired as its own TV show, the winner of the competition still received something of value: the privilege of performing a song for HBO’s audience on national television.

Today I’m speaking with the winner of that competition, Isabella Henao. As a fellow musician, I thought Henao crushed her performance of Evanescence’s “Bring Me To Life” in the culminating moments of season two. And as someone who is endlessly fascinated by how much of Fielder’s stunts are “real,” I was thrilled to get an insider’s perspective on what it’s like to go through Fielder’s shenanigans as they happen. Henao spoke with me about what it was like to go through the audition process, what contestants were actually told about what was happening, what other contestants’ thought about the whole thing, and how being on The Rehearsal changed her life.

This interview has been edited and condensed for brevity and clarity. To listen to a fuller version of the conversation, check out the podcast/video above. If you want to learn more about Isabella, check out her website.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Matt Goldberg discuss what we think of the Alien franchise is at this point in popular culture. Then, we review and recap the first two episodes of Alien: Earth on FX/Hulu.

What did we think of the bold new premise for the show? Does it look like they spent $250 million to bring this to life? (Yes). What did we make of the fact that the show splits its attention between two major plotlines? And what about all the information that’s revealed about the main characters in the first two episodes? Listen to hear us discuss all these questions and more.

Be sure to check out Matt’s written review for Decoding TV.

Homework for next week:

• Alien: Earth Episode 3 (FX/Hulu)

Shownotes:

• 01:30 - What we think of the state of the Alien franchise
• 15:00 - Alien: Earth
• Episode 1 - Neverland
• Episode 2 - Mr. October

Links:

• Check out Matt’s newsletter, Commentary Track
• Subscribe to this podcast on YouTube
• Follow this podcast on Instagram
• Follow this podcast on Tiktok
• Subscribe to David’s free newsletter, Decoding Everything
• Follow David on Instagram
• Follow David on Tiktok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this bonus episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David Chen and Sarah Marrs discuss Untamed’s first season on Netflix. What did we think of how this show handled its central mystery? Were we captivated by any of the characters’ side plots? How did the show take advantage of its unique setting? And where do we think the second season of Untamed should be set? Listen to hear us discuss all these questions and more!

Homework for next episode:

• Alien: Earth season premiere (Hulu)

Links:

• Follow Sarah Marrs on Bluesky
• Check out Sarah’s work on Lainey Gossip
• Subscribe to this podcast on YouTube
• Follow this podcast on Instagram
• Follow this podcast on Tiktok
• Subscribe to David’s free newsletter, Decoding Everything
• Follow David on Instagram
• Follow David on Tiktok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the first few episodes of Twisted Metal Season 2 on Peacock.

What did we think of South Park’s provocative season 27 premiere? How excited are we for the possibility of a Wolfenstein TV show? And what do we make of the details about Vince Gilligan’s Pluribus that have dropped so far? Listen to hear us discuss all these questions and more.

Homework for next week:

• Untamed Season 1 (Netflix)

Shownotes:

• 10:00 - TV News
• South Park Premiere puts Donald Trump in bed with Satan
• Wolfenstein TV series in development
• Rick and Morty spin-off resident Curtis spin-off announced at Comic-Con
• Apple sets fall release for Pluribus
• WBD announces the new (very silly) names for their companies
• 49:48 - Twisted Metal Season 2
• Episode 1 - PRSRPNT
• Episode 2 - DOLF4C3
• Episode 3 - T3STDRV

Links:

• Listen to Patrick’s videogame podcast, Remap Radio
• Subscribe to Patrick’s newsletter, Crossplay
• Subscribe to this podcast on YouTube
• Follow this podcast on Instagram
• Follow this podcast on Tiktok
• Subscribe to David’s free newsletter, Decoding Everything
• Follow David on Instagram
• Follow David on Tiktok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

n this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the first five episodes of Smoke on Apple TV+.

Was the cancellation of the Late Show financially motivated or were political considerations involved? Are the price hikes at Peacock reasonable or out of control? And what do we think about how The Last of Us might wrap up? Listen to hear us discuss all these questions and more!

Homework for next week:

• Twisted Metal Season 2 Premiere (Peacock)

Shownotes:

• 04:30 - TV News
• The Late Show with Stephen Colbert is cancelled
• Peacock’s Biggest Price Increase Ever
• The Last of US Season 3 will take place in 2027 and will probably be the end of the show
• 45:30 - Smoke
• Episode 1 - Pilot
• Episode 2 - Your Happy Makes Me Sad
• Episode 3 - Weird Milk
• Episode 4 - Strawberry
• Episode 5 - Size Matters

Links:

• Listen to Patrick’s videogame podcast, Remap Radio
• Subscribe to Patrick’s newsletter, Crossplay
• Subscribe to this podcast on YouTube
• Follow this podcast on Instagram
• Follow this podcast on Tiktok
• Subscribe to David’s free newsletter, Decoding Everything
• Follow David on Instagram
• Follow David on Tiktok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the fourth season of The Bear.

What is behind the President’s hatred of Rosie O’Donnell? Is Squid Game: The Challenge as abominable as it sounds? What were the biggest streaming shows in the first half of 2025? And did The Bear season 4 improve upon what we saw in season 3? Listen to hear us discuss all these questions and more!

Homework for next week:

• Smoke Season 1 eps 1-5 (Apple TV+)

Shownotes:

• 01:30 - TV News
• Donald Trump tries to revoke Rosie O’Donnell’s citizenship
• Larry David Returning to HBO With Obamas-Produced Sketch Series
• Squid Game: The Challenge renewed
• Streaming Ratings: ‘Bluey’ Reign Continues in First Half of 2025, ‘Squid Game’ Leads Originals
• ‘Harry Potter’ First Look
• 43:30 - The Bear Season 4

Links:

• Listen to Patrick’s videogame podcast, Remap Radio
• Subscribe to Patrick’s newsletter, Crossplay
• Subscribe to this podcast on YouTube
• Follow this podcast on Instagram
• Follow this podcast on Tiktok
• Subscribe to David’s free newsletter, Decoding Everything
• Follow David on Instagram
• Follow David on Tiktok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this bonus episode, David and Myles McNutt from the Episodic Medium newsletter discuss the 2025 Emmy nominations (you can watch our live broadcast on YouTube here).

Which shows came away with some of the biggest nominations? Why do the “Guest Actor” categories continue to be a travesty? What were the biggest snubs? And was this overall a shameful year for the Emmys or did we experience less shame? Listen to hear us discuss all these questions and more.

Links:

• Subscribe to Episodic Medium
• Follow Myles on Bluesky
• Subscribe to this podcast on YouTube
• Follow this podcast on Instagram
• Follow this podcast on Tiktok
• Subscribe to David’s free newsletter, Decoding Everything
• Follow David on Instagram
• Follow David on Tiktok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the Decoding TV podcast, David and Patrick discuss what’s going on in the world of TV, then dive into the final season of Squid Game.

How is Squid Game Season 3 performing on Netflix? What did we make of the fact that Neil Druckmann has left The Last of Us? What’s going on with the creators of South Park and Paramount/Skydance? And are we excited about another season of The Bear? Listen to hear us discuss all these questions and more!

Homework for next week:

• The Bear Season 4 (Hulu)

Shownotes:

• 13:00 - TV News
• ‘Squid Game 3’ Sets Netflix Record With Massive 60.1 Million Views in Three Days
• ‘Last of Us’ Shocker: Neil Druckmann Exits HBO Series Ahead of Season 3
• ‘South Park’ Creators Slam Paramount-Skydance Merger as a ‘S— Show’ and Say ‘It’s F—ing Up’ New Episodes: ‘We Hope Fans Get to See Them Somehow’
• Renewals:
• Order Up: ‘The Bear’ Renewed for Season 5 by FX
• Slow Horses already renewed for season 7
• 41:45 - Squid Game Season 3

Links:

• Listen to Patrick’s videogame podcast, Remap Radio
• Subscribe to Patrick’s newsletter, Crossplay
• Subscribe to this podcast on YouTube
• Follow this podcast on Instagram
• Follow this podcast on Tiktok
• Subscribe to David’s free newsletter, Decoding Everything
• Follow David on Instagram
• Follow David on Tiktok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.